The Bad Boys of Summer Anthology(45)

“Well since you said please…” I stood up and grabbed his hand and allowed him to lead me down the hall and into his room.

Ash’s bedroom looked pretty much like I expected a college-aged guy’s room to look. There was a full-sized bed that I was surprised to find neatly made with solid grey linens, a large wooden dresser that donned a framed picture of Ash with an older couple who I assumed were his parents, and a desk that held his laptop and textbooks. It was tidier than I had anticipated; there weren’t any stray clothes or shoes lying around. Thick light-blocking curtains hung over the one window in the room, but the walls were bare of any art or other decoration.

I wasn’t sure how long I had been standing there studying his room when I realized Ash was watching me. Not letting go of his hand, I turned to face him and was greeted by his devilish grin.

“Does it pass your inspection?” he teased. I looked at his mouth as he talked and unconsciously licked my lips, yearning to know how his mouth would feel against mine. He then moved his gaze to my mouth and cocked his eyebrows at me and smirked.

I could feel the warmth of the blush creep across my face and neck, mortified that I had not only been caught scrutinizing his personal living space but at my body’s obvious physical reaction to his proximity. I nodded and then lost the battle to contain my nervous giggles.

“What’s so funny?” he asked.

“Nothing,” I replied, not wanting to admit to him the reason I was so thoroughly inspecting his room was because this was the first time I had ever been in a guy’s room.

“Nothing, huh?”

The next thing I knew, I was lying flat on my back in the center of Ash’s bed and he was tickling me relentlessly. I desperately tried to escape his assault, but my legs were trapped between his and he had both of my arms pinned above my head with one of his hands.

“I am not going to stop until you tell me why you think my room is so funny,” he said as he continued to torment me with his free hand.

“Okay, okay,” I managed to say when I finally stopped laughing long enough to catch my breath.

Ash stopped tickling me at my surrender but kept my body restrained under his. His mesmerizing eyes penetrated mine as he waited for my answer. For the first time I noticed a light sprinkle of freckles across the bridge of his nose and cheeks. Dimples and freckles… my two weaknesses - I was starting to wonder if he wasn’t made just for me. He was close enough that his scent, a mixture of clean refreshing soap and minty fresh toothpaste, flooded my nostrils and I clenched my legs together hoping to relieve the growing ache in my sex. His nearness made me lose complete control of my thoughts and physical reactions.

“I wasn’t laughing at your room,” I admitted. “I wasn’t really laughing at anything. It just struck me as comical that here I am, eighteen years old, starting college in a couple of days, and this is the first guy’s room I’ve ever been inside except for my brother’s. You’ve probably had more girls in here than… well, I don’t have any idea how many, but…” I turned my head away from him humiliated again at my inexperience.

“Hey, please don’t turn away from me,” Ash said softly as he used his hand to turn my chin so I was looking in his eyes once again. I willed my tears back as they threatened to pool in my eyes; I was NOT going to cry. What in the hell was wrong with me? I went from laughing hysterically one minute to crying the next. I was a mess.

“There’s no reason for you to be embarrassed,” he continued. His hand moved from beneath my chin to my cheek where he gently stroked back and forth with his thumb.

“You are breathtakingly beautiful, incredibly talented, obviously intelligent, and when I look into your eyes I see the most pure, untainted soul of anyone I have ever met. Your innocence and inexperience only increases your sexiness and sensuality. You, Scarlett Alexandria MacGregor, truly are an enigma.”

The thumb that had been caressing my cheek moved to my bottom lip and I instinctively opened my mouth. I flicked my tongue over the tip of his thumb, tasting his sweet flesh, before drawing it into my mouth and sucking on it. Ash inhaled deeply and his eyes darkened to a stormy blue. He broke our stare and shifted his desire-filled gaze to my mouth, watching me provocatively play with his thumb ~ licking, sucking, biting.

Without removing his hand from my mouth, Ash leaned his face to mine and seared my lips with his. His lips were neither soft nor rough, they were just perfect, there was no other way to describe it. Our lips fit together as if they were made for one another, our tongues danced as if they had been partners for years. For what seemed like forever, we kissed and licked and nipped at each other’s mouths, exploring and devouring . His hands tangled in my dark hair and every so often he would lightly tug on it, forcing me to tilt my head back so he could kiss across my jawline and down my neck. He pulled my hair with more force and I experienced a stimulating mixture of pain and pleasure, which caused a moan to escape from the back of my throat. I hadn’t been kissed many times in my life, but I knew instantly that nothing would ever compare to this first kiss that I shared with Ash.

Disappointment washed over me as I felt him withdraw from my mouth. He rolled over so he was no longer on top of me but instead sitting next to me on the bed. Immediately, my body craved to be pressed up against his again.

“I’m sorry,” he said as he ran his hands through his hair. I noticed he did that often when he was either frustrated or at a loss for words.

“I swore that I wouldn’t do that, and look at me - we haven’t even been in here ten minutes and I’m already breaking that promise.” He looked over at me guiltily.

“It’s okay. Please don’t say you’re sorry,” I confessed with a sheepish smile. “It’s not like I wasn’t a willing participant. I wanted that as much as you did.” Probably even more so, but I wasn’t about to tell him that.

“Come over here,” he said, returning my smile as he pulled me into his arms. “Let’s lay down. It’s after 4:00 in the morning and I’m keeping you from getting any sleep. We will have other nights to talk.”

He positioned us so that we were in the spooning position, my back tucked up snugly against his chest and his right arm draped across my middle. He peppered kisses up and down my neck, from my earlobe to my shoulder and then back again. I forced myself to stop over-analyzing the situation, overwhelmed at the onslaught of emotions, and enjoyed the moment for what it was.

“So soft, so sweet. My little butterfly. My beautiful Psyche.” Ash murmured as he nuzzled his face in the nape of my neck. I had found heaven. I didn’t really know what he was talking about or what he had called me, but nothing could ruin my perfect night. That was the last thought I remembered having before I drifted into a blissful sleep.

I woke up the following morning feeling happier than I could remember being ~ ever. Ash’s arms were still tightly wrapped around my waist, our legs tangled together, and I could feel his morning-induced erection pressed against my back. I rolled over so that I was facing him, hoping he stayed in his vulnerable state of sleep so that I could better study him, but his eyes were wide open and a smile tugged at the corners of his lips when I looked at him.

“Good afternoon, butterfly,” he whispered, brushing my hair back from my face.

“Good afternoon?” I asked still ignoring the nickname.

“Yeah, it’s a little after 2:00. I didn’t want to wake you. You looked so comfortable, so peaceful.”

“Mmmm… thank you. I did sleep quite well.”

I scooted closer to him and rested my cheek on his chest. Ash held me securely against his body and kissed the top of my head. I felt him take a deep breath as if he was gathering the courage to say something, but he remained silent. We lay like that for several minutes, as if we were both committing the moment to memory, never wanting to forget the night we had spent together.

“What’s wrong?” I asked quietly. “I know you want to say something, and from your hesitation, I’m guessing it’s not something I want to hear.”

His body tensed at my words and I pulled away from him slightly so I could look up to his face. His jaw pulsed as he clenched his teeth. I touched his face, much like he had done to me the night before, rubbing my fingers delicately across his cheeks, hoping to relax his uneasiness.

“Scarlett, I… we…” he stammered, still unable to get the words out.

“Just say it, Ash,” I demanded.

“We can’t do this… I can’t do this with you,” he began as my stomach tightened. “As much as I would love to, I just can’t. It wouldn’t be fair to you.”

I gave him a puzzled look not understanding what had happened, what had gone wrong.

“Look Scarlett, you are about to go through this crucial transition in your life, changing from the sheltered girl you were under your parents control, to a beautiful young woman that’s ready to spread her wings and fly. Because you haven’t experienced many of the things that most people our age have, you, more than anyone, need this time to find out who you are and what you want. What you don’t need is me around to complicate things,” he explained.